Commonwealth Government orders 44 additional Bushmasters to be manufactured in Bendigo by Thales Australia

Thales Australia has welcomed the Albanese Government’s commitment to invest $100m to build an additional 44 Bushmaster PMVs at Thales’ Protected Vehicle Centre of Excellence in Bendigo, marking a total investment over $300 million.

The new Bushmasters announced today will be used by the Australian Army’s second long-range fires regiment, to be based at the Edinburgh Defence Precinct in South Australia as part of the 10th Fires Brigade.

More than 1300 Bushmasters have been manufactured at Thales’ Bendigo facility, with the vehicle being exported to eight nations including the UK, New Zealand, the Netherlands and Japan. The in-demand platform includes troop-carrier, command, patrol and ambulance variants.

The continuity and certainty provided by the latest Commonwealth Government investment will enable Thales Australia to undertake not only future upgrades of existing Bushmaster variants, but also to develop new roles and capabilities for the versatile platform.

Jeff Connolly, CEO, Thales Australia and New Zealand said “The Bushmaster is an excellent example of what we do at Thales Australia as a trusted partner of the Australian government, utilising local skills, design, engineering and technology to protect the interests of Australia, our allies and partners.”